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Vampires in Silent Cinema
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Book Presentation:
One of the first academic books devoted to vampires in silent cinema
• Explores vampires in all of their cinematic forms and metaphors, ranging from the supernatural to the natural, as in the case of "vampire thieves" and "vampire criminals"
• Covers the subject globally, exploring vampires as depicted in various national cinemas
• Opens new vistas of discovery in vampire and horror studies, connecting the silent films under review with earlier vampire folklore, literature, and theater
• Provides new approaches to Nosferatu (1922) and London after Midnight (1927), the two films covered in the book that have been discussed at length by prior scholars
• Features images from forgotten films not published or seen in over a century
Despite the enormous cultural impact of Nosferatu (1922) on modern entertainment, the history of vampires in silent film is largely unknown.
Vampires in Silent Cinema covers the subject from 1896-1931, reclaiming a large array of forgotten films from countries ranging from the United States and France to Hungary and Russia. Drawing on thousands of primary sources, Rhodes explores vampirism in all of its manifestations, from the supernatural undead to the natural vamp.
About the Author:
Gary D. Rhodes is Professor of Media, Oklahoma Baptist University. He is the author of Emerald Illusions: The Irish in Early American Cinema (2012), The Perils of Moviegoing in America (2012), and The Birth of the American Horror Film (2018). He is a founding editor of Horror Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal. Rhodes is also the writer-director of the documentary films Lugosi: Hollywood's Dracula (1997) and Banned in Oklahoma (2004).
Press Reviews:
Rhodes' book is full of original information, presented affably. It entertains as well as informs. It moves through the 18th through 21st centuries, providing a history of vampire culture, and how it was presented through press, books, the stage and screen.– Doug Gibson, Plan 9 Crunch
Vampires in Silent Cinema is an invaluable resource for aficionados and scholars of early cinema. Rhodes' extensive research leaves no stone unturned and has shed light on many mysteries and misconceptions around the birth of the vampire genre. It is among the most illuminating and original books on vampires in recent memory.
– Robert Eggers, Director of The Witch and Nosferatu
At last, an account of the vampire in silent cinema that is fully researched! From Theda Bara’s sexy "vamp"; Musidora’ s criminal Irma Vep; a lost Hungarian film; through to Murnau’s Nosferatu and the lead-up to Lugosi’s "talkie," Rhodes combines the enthusiasm of a fan with the care of a scholar.
– Tom Gunning, University of Chicago
Gary D. Rhodes has done his due diligence as a researcher and is set on doing some scholarly house-cleaning, devoting his first chapter to righting the historical record. Should you be a detail-oriented fan consumed by the trials, tribulations, and transformations of the undead — a term the good professor spends some time unpacking — Vampires in Silent Cinema comes recommended.– Mario Naves, The New York Sun
Gary D. Rhodes’ work is a carefully detailed account of the vampire archetype’s journey from literary and folkloric origins to the silent screen, which explains how early visual narratives enriched the vampire’s complex and uncanny character.– Dávid Szőke, Film International
See the publisher website: Edinburgh University Press
> From the same author:
The Films of Budd Boetticher (2017)
Dir. Gary D. Rhodes and Robert Singer
Subject: Director > Budd Boetticher
No Traveler Returns (2012)
The Lost Years of Bela Lugosi
by Gary D. Rhodes and Bill Kaffenberger
Subject: Actor > Bela Lugosi
Stanley Kubrick (2007)
Essays on His Films and Legacy
Dir. Gary D. Rhodes
Subject: Director > Stanley Kubrick
Docufictions (2005)
Essays on the Intersection of Documentary and Fictional Filmmaking
Dir. Gary D. Rhodes and John Parris Springer
Subject: Genre > Documentary
> On a related topic:
Pass the Gravy (2024)
Serving Up the Lives, Careers and Recipes of 196 Silent Film Stars
Subject: Silent Cinema
Silent Film and the Formations of U.S. Literary Culture (2024)
Literature in Motion
Subject: Silent Cinema
Silent Film Adaptations of Novels by British and American Women Writers, 1903-1929 (2024)
Viewer, I Married Him
Subject: Silent Cinema
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